Something I've been meaning to comment on

[valarltd]

One of the churches i drave by has a sign that says

P U S H
Pray Until Something Happens



So, they are saying God can be coerced? (obscure Julian May reference)

Me, I'd rather pray once, figuring God will do as he pleases, and work on it from there.

Comments

[revdorothyl.livejournal.com]

Well, I can't vouch for how that particular church means it, but I always thought that the point of the parable Jesus told, about "the Widow and the Unrighteous Judge" (to the effect that the disciples should pray always and not lose heart) wasn't to say that God can be coerced, or that God NEEDS to be badgered into doing what's right (like the Judge in the story), but rather to suggest that praying constantly changes US in important ways.

Like you, I believe God will do as God thinks best and probably knows better than I do what needs to be done. But maybe my praying will help me to understand that better, and even bring my own actions into closer correspondence with God's goals and affections.

Using the acronym "P.U.S.H.", however, DOES suggest that this church might be one of those "if you don't get what you prayed for, then your faith just wasn't strong enough and it's all your fault that your child died or you lost your house" groups, who can do a lot of harm and drive people away in droves. That's sad.

Oddly enough, this pagan agrees with you

[dakiwiboid.livejournal.com]

I've come around to the viewpoint that prayer and meditation change us deeply and thoroughly. Once our outlook and our abilities are changed by prayer and meditation, the world around us is different.

Re: Oddly enough, this pagan agrees with you

[revdorothyl.livejournal.com]

"Once our outlook and our abilities are changed by prayer and meditation, the world around us is different."

Well put! After all, doesn't quantum physics tell us that the observer affects the state of what is observed? And since we're all part of the world as well as observers of it, when we change even the smallest attitude or habit in ourselves, or achieve the smallest measure of peace of mind, we've made the world a different place. The moment you start to pray or meditate, you've made 'something happen,' whether you practice Zen Buddhism or Islam or Judaism or Christianity or any of the other religions or spiritual disciplines in this world.

Thanks for bringing that into focus.

Hee!

[jedi-penguin.livejournal.com]

*snogs you for Julian May reference*

I LOVE those books!